The Changing World Of Latin Jazz

Jazz - When many people think of Latin Jazz, a salsa dance party comes up, with hot dance rhythms charging behind jazz harmonies and improvised solos. This is really one aspect of this style - musicians like Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaria, Cal Tjader, and Ray Barretto have gotten people on the dance floor for many years with jazz and Cuban rhythms.

Dance rhythms certainly hold a spot in modern Latin Jazz, but a growing quantity of artists have abandoned the party area for several cultural and artistic influences. Today, many Latin Jazz musicians integrate rhythmic traditions from the broader spectrum with the Caribbean and South usa, often blending cultural elements with modern jazz influences.

Latin jazz - Traditional Afro-Peruvian rhythms have played a big part within the increase of Latin Jazz, bringing rhythmic styles like the festejo and landó to the style as well a far more guitar heavy approach. Guitarist Richie Zellon has combined these traditions with jazz harmonies extensively while trumpet player Gabriel Alegria is promoting a distinctive approach together with his Afro-Peruvian Sextet.

While stateside Latin Jazz always carried a Puerto Rican influence, it's got only been that artists have put a distinct emphasis upon the concept of traditional rhythms like bomba and plena supporting jazz contexts. Trombonist Papo Vazquez provides his ferocious command of bebop over Puerto Rican rhythms while saxophonist Miguel Zenón has dived deep into plena and classic Puerto Rican songs like a foundation for jazz.

Argentina happens to be known for it's passionate tango, and lots of musicians have realized that this music is really a natural fit for jazz. Bassist Pablo Aslan has generated a definite language for improvising around tango structures while pianist Pablo Ziegler has continued the task of influential composer Astor Piazzolla using a distinct jazz twist.

Listeners often look at the lush bossa novas of Antonio Carlos Jobim when they consider the blend of Brazilian rhythms and jazz, but the style has exploded into something far more dynamic. Pianist Jovino Santos Neto has generated upon his long tenure with composer Hermeto Pascoal and designed a highly creative repertoire of original Brazilian jazz while drummer Duduka Da Fonseca has blended the liberty behind a New York jazz sensibility with dynamic samba rhythms.

Trumpet - The dance floor is obviously still an integral part of Latin Jazz - just hear the background music of Poncho Sanchez or Pete Escovedo to get a healthy dose of danceable jazz. The style has certainly expanded artistically, reflecting an even more encompassing spectrum of Latin traditions and providing listeners an even more diverse experience.